


One of Those Nights

by queenssmoaks



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-15
Updated: 2014-12-15
Packaged: 2018-03-01 13:28:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2774735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenssmoaks/pseuds/queenssmoaks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>** Set before the final scene of 3x09, "The Climb"**</p><p>As Oliver prepares to face R'as Al Ghul in a duel, Felicity tries to calm him down with a little much-needed TLC.</p><p>**Alternate ending combined with actual events**</p>
            </blockquote>





	One of Those Nights

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know about anyone else, but my heart is still broken from the mid-season finale. I knew that it was going to happen like it did, but that doesn't make it any better. Though I have the utmost faith in survivors, I still wish more happened between Olicity before Oliver left. So, I wrote this, and added a little more of what I would've liked to see.

Certain victory or certain death awaited him and it frustrated Oliver to not know which it would be.

As the hours ticked by, he paced restlessly in the lair. He was confident in his fighting abilities and knew that he had what it took to beat R'as Al Ghul. But R'as had been around for much longer than he had and Oliver knew the man's wrath wasn't going to be diminished so quickly. It wasn't like R'as or the League of Assassins to give up on something so easily and it was no different with Sara's death. Maybe more-so, Sara had meant the world to Nyssa, and Oliver could tell that from the first time they met, from the first time he saw his ex-girlfriend and her ex-girlfriend kiss. Sara may have cared about Nyssa but she always had a special place in her heart for him: and that hadn't changed, not even with her death. Oliver hadn't been able to protect her: he had always wanted to, even when the Gambit sank. Sara had transformed, though, in the five years he fought to stay alive on the island and had encountered her. She had been strong and didn't let anything break her. She had taken it upon herself to keep Cindy safe and found solace in her nightly escapades as the Canary. But the League wouldn't have soon let her forget her devotion to them, and she would always be a part of the League. So, Oliver wasn't surprised when they showed up at his doorstep, demanding to know who Sara's killer was.

The worst part was knowing who had really killed her: his own sister, Thea. But Thea couldn't have been herself, she wouldn't have ever dared to kill anyone. Oliver knew Merlyn had had her under some sort of spell, some sort of potion that had her unaware of what she was doing. And Oliver would make him pay for that, he had tried to as he slammed Merlyn's face into the bar at Verdant. He would never trust Malcolm, but Thea seemed to. He knew that Malcolm was her only blood left but that didn't mean that Oliver wouldn't go to the ends of the earth to protect Thea. And that's exactly what he was going to do. Everyone knew that he couldn't have possibly killed Sara, not with how he felt about her. But he couldn't let his sister take the downfall for something she had no control over. And so, that was how he came to be pacing nervously in the lair, trying to clear his mind and prepare himself for the battle ahead.

Oliver's thoughts were interrupted as he heard heels clicking on the floor and turned around to be faced with Felicity.

Felicity. with her hair pulled back in her signature ponytail with her signature glasses, and a pink trench coat around her shoulders. She must have just come from work at Queen Consolidated, with that certain Ray Palmer that he didn't like very much. It was painfully clear as to why he didn't, but Oliver had a hard time admitting the truth to himself. He didn't want to put Felicity in any danger and hurt her more than he already had. He tried to give it a try months earlier but that ended in an explosion and Felicity being knocked unconscious. He remembered telling Barry Allen that, "Guys like us don't get the girl", and thought only of her. She was his everything, though he wouldn't admit it to her or himself. John knew the truth and could tell just by how Oliver acted but Oliver seemed to hurt Felicity even more deliberately by hurting himself.

Felicity dropped her bag on the computer chair in front of her monitors and shrugged off her coat as she gave a warm smile to Oliver. It wasn't very convincing, and he could see the obvious worry in her features. 

"Oliver, you're going to burn footprints into the floor if you keep pacing like that." She told him, turning around and walking up to him, placing her hands on his shoulders. He was about a head taller than her and she had to reach up in order to do so.

Oliver laughed nervously. "We wouldn't want that now, would we?" He replied, raising a brow and looking down at her. Seeing Felicity's face was probably the best thing that could happen to him right now and he really needed more support than he was letting on.

"Come on, I'll give you a massage. It'll loosen your muscles and relieve some tension so you can focus." She said, striding over to the wooden trunk where Oliver kept his old bow and arrow, patting it for him to sit down.

Oliver wasn't so sure a massage was what he needed: what he needed was a guarantee that he would win this duel and end all of this once and for all. No matter how confident he was, there were still things to make him feel weak. His old friend from Hong Kong made sure that he knew R'as was a tough opponent and Oliver wouldn't be making it out alive. Seeing his hesitation, Felicity shook her head and strode back over to him, taking his hand in hers and tugging him to sit down. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable by removing his shirt and showing his scars, so she simply arranged him so his clothed back was facing her. 

She hesitated before putting her hands on his shoulders, to which he responded by slightly flinching. Her hands were so gentle and her thumbs worked in small circles over his shoulders. That felt better than he could have ever imagined and he slowly closed his eyes and allowed himself to accept what Felicity was trying to do in order to calm him down.

"You know, my mom being a cocktail waitress in Vegas and all, I could've easily ended up working in a spa. But somehow I didn't think that was the right path for me." She said softly, her thumbs kneading into his shoulders a little more forcefully now. Oliver had been tense the weeks after Sara's death and he only had more reason to be now. He didn't have much time to himself and either had to be worried about saving the city or saving Thea from Merlyn. But now, Felicity had made this about /him', and she was an expert at what she did.

"But if you had been a masseuse, I would have never had you a part of Team Arrow." Oliver pointed out. "And I don't think there is anyone else who could do your job as good as you do." He seemed to be able to let his guard down around her: he remembered telling her on their first date that she was the first person he was able to see as a person. Everyone else just seemed... unreal. The after-effects of the island had had more than a strong influence on him but she seemed to make it all better. Even when he had kissed her that first and final time, he felt like he was in disbelief with the words coming out of his mouth. Oliver was lying to Felicity and lying to himself. But he couldn't let her be left with that memory of him, in case things didn't go as planned.

Oliver could almost hear Felicity's smile as she moved from his shoulders to the back of his neck, her thumbs working tiny circles on the exposed skin. He held a lot of tension there and she was slowly working it out. He couldn't explain how thankful he was to have her around and didn't even want to think about what life would have been like without her. "I thought you were against Cisco and his name game." She laughed. "But thank you. I like to think I wouldn't enjoy my life half as much if it were any different." The last part came out in a whisper. He knew she was just as broken up about their failed attempt at a relationship as he was. It was mostly his fault, not allowing it to happen. And he couldn't blame her for wanting to be happy. He simply wished they could be happy... together.

Felicity finished her massage and patted his back, so Oliver turned around and stood up. Looking down at her as she looked up at him, he took her by the arm and leaned in, his lips pressing against her forehead softly, lingering there afterwards. He could feel her tug softly on his shirt, not wanting him to pull away just yet. No matter how unconventional they were, Oliver would always have a special place for Felicity. He had saved his life that first night he showed up in the trunk of her car and he would never forget it. Pulling away, he brought a hand up to cup one side of her face, his thumb stroking a soft path along her cheekbone. Her eyes had begun to fill with tears and she was fighting to keep herself from breaking down in front of him. Felicity exhibited both of their fears but he couldn't let her see him worried. He had to be confident, if not for him, then for her.

"Felicity, I honestly don't know if I'm a killer anymore. But I do know two things. The first is that, whoever I am, I am someone that will do whatever it takes to save my sister." He knew she already knew that, but what she didn't know was what he was about to say.

"A-And the second thing?" Felicity stammered, as he swiped his thumb below her eye to catch the tear that had escaped.

He paused for a moment, his gaze meeting hers and his breaths slowing. Oliver had thought about saying this for a long time, but he hadn't been able to make himself do it. He hadn't allowed himself to completely break down and let his walls fall. He had become used to being so guarded, so high-strung, that he didn't have time to allow himself to admit his true feelings. But there wasn't a need to pretend anymore. 

"I love you." Oliver told her, bringing his other hand up to cup her other cheek and guided her face upwards to meet his lips with hers.

This kiss was so unlike the one back at the hospital. That kiss was just a simple goodbye, it was just Oliver being Oliver. He wasn't going to allow himself to be happy at that point and wouldn't think about what it's like to be happy. But now, in this time of crisis, he had a lot of time to think about what he wanted. And he decided that he had enough of torturing himself and pretending he didn't love Felicity. He did love Felicity and there wasn't a chance that he would ever be able to stop. She was everything to him and she would continue to be everything to him, no matter what happened on that mountain. Oliver was hers and Felicity was his, and he hoped this kiss would show her that. This kiss wasn't meant to be a goodbye, it was a promise that he wasn't going to deny his feelings any longer. He wasn't going to torture himself or Felicity any longer. It had taken him to this moment to realize that he had to let things be how they were meant to, but Oliver was glad that he did.

He gripped Felicity tightly, pulling her body against his. He had been training, and his shirt was slightly damp from the exercises he had been doing, but Felicity didn't care. She gripped his biceps with her tiny hands like she was clinging onto him for dear life. Her lips moved against his urgently, trying to convey all of the built-up emotion she had had since that kiss in the hospital, since she had heard the things he said about having someone to care about. She had been angry but she knew that Oliver simply wasn't ready. And she was tired of pushing him to do something he clearly couldn't handle. No matter how much she loved him, she loved herself, too. But that kiss with Ray had been a complete mistake. He wasn't Oliver and there wasn't anyone that could replace Oliver. He slid one of his hands around her back and tugged softly on her ponytail, weaving his fingers through her soft blonde hair. He drank her in like the most delicious glass of wine he could ever taste and memorized what her lips felt like beneath the soft trace of his tongue. She gasped softly, overwhelmed by the course the kiss had taken. 

Abruptly, Oliver pulled away and pulled Felicity against his chest. He could feel her tears dampening his shirt even more but he couldn't kiss her anymore, or he would never leave. She was his only reason to stay but he had to do this for Thea. And Felicity understood what his sister meant to him and that was one of the greatest gifts he could ever receive. Pressing a kiss to the top of her head, he released her and reached down to grasp her hand in his own. Squeezing it softly, Oliver let it go and walked over to pick up his bag from where he kept his Arrow costume. Turning back to her, he gazed upon her one last time. He hoped it wouldn't be the last time forever.

She gave him a weak smile and crossed her arms over her chest, restricting herself from running back into his arms and begging him not to leave. She knew she couldn't do that and simply prayed she would see him again that night.

"Kill him." Felicity told Oliver with conviction. "You have to end this, once and for all. So he can't hurt anyone ever again."

Oliver nodded in agreement and turned, stalking off towards the door to the foundry and up the stairs that would lead him outside.

"I love you, too." Felicity whispered to herself, since Oliver had departed.

All she hoped was that he knew it, too.


End file.
